hey!! i am now in bangkok and i cant believe it!! here already and this really is coming to the end of my travels now...scary stuff!! its also the ending point for my tour from singapore to here! crazy! but its been the best fun since i last wrote on here...ao nang, krabi was just amazing! absolutely beautiful and so much to see and do and appreciate!! amazing place and i really didnt want to leave! stunning! had some amzing nights out too and lapped up the atmosphere with beach clubs and fab people! ; ) the islands were a muct see and i even tried diving!! was so scared but i am so pleased i tried it...and what a place to try as well! was the weirdest experience breathing underwater but was so worth all the nerves!! especially when my guide pointed out nemo!! swimming and guarding his little home it was definately a highlight!! ; ) kind of eager to try it again...went out to celebrate our dives and had a fab night with 3 friends in a club called the chang bar - right on the beach. had a fab time but ended in catastrophe when one of my friends deleted all my photos!!! ; ( gutted but she was so much more distraught than me...kinda made it worse that it was someone else who'd done it! was gutted for her...plus there was some amazing pics that got lost...but hey ho! its the heat and humidity out here...the moisture gets into the memory card and sends it a bit doo lally!!! ; ) c'est la vie! ; ) so moving on from that i went in search of more pic to make up for it!! and started by doing an elephant trek...was fab! they were bloody huge and really daunting to be on top of one! its a long drop off one of them! but was still fun! fed them and trekked with them for a bit and then met the baby of the pack! what a cutie!! time had come to move on from krabo though so after the trek we headed up to surat thani - the station for the overnight train that takes you further north through thailand. we boarded the train at 6pm and spent 12 hours on it. what an experience!! the guards come round and make up everyones beds - the beds line each side of the carriage and you have a curtain for privacy but its so weird to be on it and sleep! made it into the 'party carriage' and had a few drinks with the workers then headed to bed for a very strange nights sleep!! kept waking up and its just so odd to hear the noises of a normal train and realise you are still on it! didnt like the wake up call by the guards running through the carriage shouting 'bangkok two stops!!' not amused!! ; ) but managed to get ready in time and get our pick ups to the hotel. we managed to lose 3 members of the group for an hour as typical thai cab drivers dont actually know where they are going even though youve been assured they do! kinda scary in the end but saw the funny side when they showed up ok!! ; ) chilled the first day and when we attempted to do something cultural we were literally taken for a ride by a tuk tuk driver!! ; ) we made a deal with him and got on board only to be taken to 1 random stop supposed to be 'the lucky buddha' - which was actually a replica and being painted by a 'monk'!!!! got taken to a tailor shop that obviously we hadnt asked for...got told off for laughing at the man who was trying to persuade my friend he should by a suit!! left in a hurry only to be told off by the tuk tuk man cos we only managed to get him 1/2 a litre worth of petrol!! its all big scam that involves tourists buying suits in return for free petrol for the tuk tuk!!! at that the guy got real annoyed at us and drove even more like a maniac (hard to believe the driving could be worse!!) ; ) he told us we were ony going to one more stop and we had to pay so we demanded he stopped and ran off without paying a single baht!!! not exactly what we had hoped for for our little trip round the city but it was certainly a funny experience and a fab start to the day!!! ; ) hilarious!! ; ) gave up on being cultural and we came back for a party in my room and watched beethoven 2!!! ; ) had a lush meal with everyone in a local thai restaurant...paid about a pound!!! bonus!! and tried out bangkok nightlife!! ; ) went to the river kuai yesterday and learnt so much about the history and conflicts. check me out!! ; ) was a long day but good. more local food last night in a restaurant next to the river - it was the last night of the tour so it had to be a goodun!! went to a pub called the station - its a petrol station by day and a pub by night! legendary! ; ) was amazing and good to be with everyone! me and my tour drinking buddy managed til 5:30am and fun was had by all!! ; ) visting the palaces and temples today. going to a thai show tonight which should be an experience!! ; ) will update as soon as on that one! went to a lady boy show the other night too. that was an experience! its kind of the thing to do here and had to be one of the most random nights but was worth seeing!! well better wrap this up for now but hope all is good with you. this is a random entry but thats exactly how bangkok is too!! im off to explore a bit more...; ) have a good day! lots of love. georgie x x x